Andy Murray fears tennis player could have heart attack in Australian Open heat

Simon Briggs

Andy Murray said he feared someone could suffer a heart attack if Australian Open organisers insist on play going ahead in 42-degree temperatures in Melbourne, as they did on Tuesday.

It only takes one bad thing to happen. And it looks terrible for the whole sport

Murray spent only 1hr 27min on court as he beat Japan's Go Soeda 6-1, 6-1, 6-3 on a day when one player, Canada's Frank Dancevic, fainted after a set and a half of his match and another, Peng Shuai of China, vomited at the side of the court. A ball boy collapsed during another match and many ticketholders chose not to sit courtside because of the intensity of the heat.

Collapsed: Frank Dancevic. Photo: AP

The Wimbledon champion said the decision to allow play to go on had projected a "terrible" image of the sport. He expressed special concern about those players embroiled in five-set matches, or exposed to direct sunlight on the outside courts.

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Murray said: "It's definitely something that you have to look at a bit. As much as it's easy to say the conditions are safe, it only takes one bad thing to happen. And it looks terrible for the whole sport when people are collapsing, ball kids are collapsing, people in the stands are collapsing. That's not great.

"I know when I went out to hit before the match, the conditions at 2.30, 3pm were very, very tough. Whether it's safe or not, I don't know. There's been some issues in other sports with players having heart attacks."

Sick on court: Peng Shuai. Photo: AFP

Murray, a logical man, dislikes it when officials seem to be making things up as they go along. But the Australian Open's "extreme heat policy" sounds like a fudge.

The guidelines allow Wayne McEwen, the tournament referee, to suspend play on the outer courts and close the roofs on the main arenas, when the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature - a composite figure that accounts for factors such as humidity and wind speed - reaches a certain level. But McEwen has declined to say what that temperature is.

A statement went out on Tuesday claiming that a "low level of humidity" had kept the conditions playable. Yet certain precautions were taken, including ice vests being sent to every court.

A 10-minute break was also allowed for female players who were required to play a deciding set.

This was another source of confusion for Murray. "I don't know why there's different rules [for men and women]," he said. "If there's a medical reason for it, then I'm fine with it. If there isn't, I'm not."

When the temperature climbs to 42 degrees, as it did about 5pm, plastic bottles start to bond with the courts and moths fall out of the sky, stone dead.

The trams carrying spectators to and from Melbourne Park had to be suspended in late afternoon after their steel tracks simply buckled in the heat.

Dancevic, who fainted, was understandably furious when he regained consciousness on Court Six and was required to complete his match against Benoit Paire. (Dancevic lost, although at least it was over relatively quickly: 7-6, 6-3, 6-4.)

"I think it's inhumane," Dancevic said. "I don't think it's fair to anybody, to the players, to the fans, to the sport, when you see players pulling out of matches, passing out. I've played five-set matches all my life and being out there for a set and a half and passing out with heatstroke, it's not normal.

"The players were having so many problems and complaining to the tournament that it's too hot to play. Until somebody dies, they'll just keep going on with it and putting matches on in this heat. I don't think it's fair and I know a lot of players don't think it's fair."

US player John Isner said it was a like an oven on court.

"When I open the oven and the potatoes are done, that's what it's like," he said.

Not every player shared the sense of alarm over the conditions. Walking on to Rod Laver Arena soon after 1pm, Roger Federer saw off Australian wild card James Duckworth in his customarily elegant and effortless manner. He barely seemed to sweat as he breezed into the second round in 1hr 46min, and later shrugged off any concerns about the weather.

"It's just a mental thing," Federer said of the high temperatures. "If you've trained hard enough your entire life, and you believe you can come through it, there's no reason [to quit]. If you can't deal with it, you throw in the towel."

These debates are likely to roll on, for Melbourne is forecast to keep sweltering until temperatures cool on Saturday.

The conditions may have contributed to a tally of nine retirements during the first round, which equals a record set at the 2011 US Open.

The first case on Tuesday was a peculiar one, as Polona Hercog, of Slovenia, started feeling her right shoulder after the warm-up and abandoned her match after only 10 minutes and six points. Her fee of $30,000 must qualify as some of the easiest money ever earned at a sporting event.

Victoria Azarenka, aiming for a third successive Australian Open title, defeated 91st-ranked Johanna Larsson, of Sweden, 7-6, 6-2. "It felt pretty hot, like you're dancing in a frying pan," the second seed said.

Australia's favourite enigma, Bernard Tomic, pulled out of his prime-time evening match against Rafael Nadal after losing the first set, which drew a chorus of hoots and boos from a capacity crowd on Rod Laver Arena.

Tomic complained of soreness in his groin, though he should perhaps have taken a lesson from Gilles Simon, who beat Daniel Brands 16-14 in the fifth set despite having been on crutches for a sprained ankle only two days earlier. When the match finished, about 11pm, the ambient temperature still stood at nearly 32 degrees.